A Harris County grand jury charged U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officer Mario Alberto Morales with aggravated assault on Friday, after prosecutors said he drove an unmarked black vehicle into Miguel Parra Hernandez during an Oct. 10 encounter in Houston. Morales was not in custody Friday, and a warrant was set to be issued for his arrest, District Attorney Sean Teare said.
The case turned on what happened in the seconds before the impact. Parra Hernandez was 48, was running away when the vehicle hit him and was later placed in custody with a broken leg. Teare said surveillance video showed a Jeep Cherokee speed over a median and drive toward Parra Hernandez as he ran, while Morales' body camera captured him driving and talking about pursuing someone. In that recording, Morales said, “He got hit with a car, bro,” and, “I was coming in and I hit him with the car.”
ICE offered a different account, saying Parra Hernandez stepped in front of the car and calling the accusations that Morales intentionally struck him false and reckless. The agency also dismissed the charge as a political stunt. But Teare said the video clearly contradicted the ICE account, and his office said its investigation had not found that Parra Hernandez and the man ICE identified as Mendoza-Cervantes were in a vehicle together.
The charge puts a federal immigration officer in the middle of a criminal case that local prosecutors say is supported by video and body camera footage. It also lands in the middle of a broader immigration crackdown, with Teare’s office already handling another high-profile case involving the fatal shooting of a Mexican homebuilder in July. ICE has argued that local officials do not have the authority to investigate federal officers acting in the course of their duties, a dispute that may now shape how the case moves forward as the warrant is issued and the court process begins.
For Parra Hernandez, the fight over jurisdiction and intent does not change what happened on the ground: he was struck, injured and taken into custody. The question now is whether the evidence that prosecutors say shows pursuit, contact and admissions will be enough to sustain the charge against Morales once the case reaches court.
